Typically, known utility vehicle cargo beds have a welded steel or welded aluminum construction and consist of many separate, mostly metal, components that are assembled using nuts and bolts.
Some known utility vehicle cargo beds are convertible to provide one or two compact-sized rear facing seats. Generally, a metal plate that forms a portion of the deck of the cargo bed is connected to the remaining portion of the deck by a fixed steel hinge, e.g. a piano hinge. To convert the cargo bed to a rear facing seat, the metal plate is pivoted along the fixed hinge and folded on top of the other portion of the deck. Such known convertible cargo beds only provide a reduced or compact-sized temporary seat compared to the full-sized forward facing seats, i.e. the driver's seat and the forward facing passenger's seat. Accordingly, the known convertible cargo beds are typically heavy, time consuming and costly to assemble, subject to rust, scratches and dents, noisy, create stability issues for the utility vehicle and only provide a compact-sized rear facing seat.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a convertible cargo bed for utility vehicles that is light weight, has very few components, will not rust and will provide a full-sized rear facing seat when placed in the seat configuration.